The 60th anniversary edition of the 12 Hours of Sebring (17 March) will
provide an appropriately illustrious backdrop for both the competitive
debut of the Aston Martin Vantage GTE and the first ever round of the
new-for-2012 FIA World Endurance Championship. Florida’s Sebring
International Raceway will host the 12-hour epic, with Aston Martin
Racing’s sights firmly trained on a strong GTE Pro class result.

Carrying
the iconic Gulf colours, the factory team’s V8-powered Vantage GTE will
arrive in Sebring off the back of a three-day test at the Road Atlanta
circuit in neighbouring Georgia. The team was able to cover significant
mileage in preparation for the 12 hour race, while works drivers Darren
Turner (GBR), Stefan Mücke (D) and Adrian Fernandez (MX) used the
opportunity to familiarise themselves with the Vantage GTE as Aston
Martin Racing makes its much-anticipated return to production car-based
motorsport.

John Gaw, Managing Director and Team Principal of
Aston Martin Racing, said: “Everyone in the team is eager to get back
into competition. Indeed, many were at Sebring when Aston Martin Racing
won on its debut with the DBR9 back in 2005. The GTE category is highly
competitive and with over 20 cars on the grid at Sebring and many top
class manufacturers it is going to be a terrific fight. We are realistic
about our chances on our debut, but we always compete to win and from
pre-season testing we know we have a competitive car. For us a top five
finish this weekend would be a terrific result, and we know there is
more to come from the Vantage GTE as the season progresses.”

Based
on the Vantage road car – and sharing its bonded aluminium structure
and basic engine and suspension designs – the Vantage GTE is the
culmination of Aston Martin Racing’s seven years of experience at the
forefront of international motorsport. During that time, the team
achieved back-to-back class victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2007
and 2008 with the DBR9 GT1 racer, as well as winning the 2009 Le Mans
Series with its LMP1-class DBR1-2 prototype.

The 12 Hours of
Sebring has become recognised as one of motorsport’s most celebrated
endurance races having first been held in 1952 at the former US Army Air
Force base in central Florida. Aston Martin Racing enjoyed its first
taste of victory at the demanding circuit as its V12-powered DBR9
stormed to class victory on its competitive debut in 2005, narrowly
missing out on an overall podium.

Darren Turner was part of the
winning line up that weekend and is looking forward to returning to
Sebring: “We’ve just completed a very positive three-day test at Road
Atlanta with the new Vantage GTE. I think everyone has been pleasantly
surprised with initial performance and reliability, which bodes well for
Sebring and the season ahead. It's always great to race in the USA as I
love the circuits; they are always very challenging and usually don't
leave any room for error. Sebring in particular is one of my favourite
circuits as it’s very old school and bumpy!

“After racing in the
FIA GT1 World Championship for the last two years it's great to be
starting another year with the new FIA World Endurance Championship. Le
Mans is always the jewel in the crown so to have that race as part of a
world championship is amazing. It’s going to be a very exciting year.”

Team-mate
Stefan Mücke continued: “The car ran really well in testing and we all
have a good feeling with it. I’m looking forward to returning to
Sebring. It will only be my second time at the circuit, but in 2010 I
scored an overall podium with Aston Martin Racing. The track is probably
the most demanding for the car and driver of the whole season, so the
first challenge is simply to complete the full 12 hours.”

Adrian
Fernandez added: "The Sebring race is always a special event for me and
to compete in the 60th anniversary running makes it even more special. I
have logged thousands of miles here over the years so I know this
circuit well. I am also really optimistic after our test at Road Atlanta
last week. I have driven many cars but never a GT so this was a totally
new experience for me. I was able to do a lot of miles and I went from
being nine-tenths of a second off my team-mates' times to one-tenth on
the third day. Obviously, I had tremendous help from Stefan and Darren.
They have a lot experience in these cars and finished second in the FIA
GT1 World Championship last year, so they are really helping my learning
curve. It may be a little bit early to say, but our feeling is that we
will be strong and, hopefully, challenging for wins in the #97 Lowe's
Vantage GTE."